Check out the following image from U.S. Drought Monitor of recent drought conditions in the western half of the U.S. compared to a year ago. Most of Southern California was under the "Extreme Drought" to "Exceptional Drought" category. The recent rain storms this year brought conditions down to "Abnormally Dry".

The U.S. Drought Monitor is jointly produced by the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Map courtesy of NDMC-UNL.

What does this mean for Californians? Can we start taking 30 minute showers again? Probably not.

Although this year may be wet, dry conditions could return again next year. 2017 may be only a wet outlier in an otherwise dry extended period. Unfortunately, the scientific ability to determine if next year will be wet or dry (known as sub-seasonal to seasonal forecasting, or long-range weather forecasting) isn’t yet capable of delivering reliable predictions.

A San Diego judge called an adult man a "little boy" in his courtroom, repeatedly noted the physical attractiveness of female attorneys and spoke to litigants in Spanish based on their surnames, among other misconduct that nearly led to his removal from office, a state disciplinary agency said Thursday.

A San Diego judge called an adult man a "little boy" in his courtroom, repeatedly noted the physical attractiveness of female attorneys and spoke to litigants in Spanish based on their surnames, among other misconduct that nearly led to his removal from office, a state disciplinary agency said Thursday.

An international team of veterinarians is in Ukraine helping hundreds of dogs at the site of the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster. One of the vets is from San Diego and spoke with News 8 via Skype while on a mission of mercy.

An international team of veterinarians is in Ukraine helping hundreds of dogs at the site of the Chernobyl nuclear plant disaster. One of the vets is from San Diego and spoke with News 8 via Skype while on a mission of mercy.

The captain of a Navy warship that lost seven sailors in a collision with a commercial container ship in June will be relieved of command and nearly a dozen others face punishment, the Navy's second-ranking admiral said Thursday.

The captain of a Navy warship that lost seven sailors in a collision with a commercial container ship in June will be relieved of command and nearly a dozen others face punishment, the Navy's second-ranking admiral said Thursday.